Sly Cooper: Band of Animals
by ChocolateMilkLOL
Summary: Electrocuted while playing Sly 2, Nifty is cast into a world that is familiar, yet unknown. It takes all she's got to survive, but she has the help of Sly, Murray, and Bentley. Will she make it out alive, or will the trials she faces take her down? INFINITE-HIATUS
1. Nifty

**Haha! I love spamming FF with my stories! Anyways, see you at the bottom.**

Sly Cooper: Band of Animals

"Yo, Nifty!" I looked up at the sound of my name… well it's not my actual name, but it works for us. "You comin' or are yeh goin' ta' lock up when yer done?"

"Nah, I'm staying right here." I said to my friend, putting my feet up on the beanbag chair in front of me.

"You can't hide here from your family forever, you know." said another voice. I shrugged and continued to stare at the crappy TV screen. From the screen's reflection I could see Tech push his thick black rimmed glasses farther up his pointed nose.

"I just need some time to cool off; I'll go back once I'm ready." I mumbled, hitting the square button a little too hard.

"Yeah, well, you've been coolin' off almost all day an' it's already ten forty," said Clout. "Maybe it's time to go back and apologize."

I paused the game. Both my friends exchange nervous glances in the reflection of the TV and backed up a few steps. "Me… apologize?"

"Erm… well yeah, I mean weren't yeh the one who broke the-"

"I DID NO SUCH THING!" I yelled, jumping up from the beanbag chair I was on. My green eyes must've been flaming, because both boys backed up another step. "You know it was that stupid girl I'm supposed to call my sister!"

Tech adjusted his glasses again and said, "And you know we weren't there for any of it."

"Yeah, I mean, you just came storming out of your house and headed for the HQ. We were never inside with you." added Clout.

I bit my lip. This was true. Both my friends were outside at the door when it happened. Straightening up, I drew in a deep sigh and looked at the floor in shame. "Sorry… I'm just pissed off and ended up taking it out on you guys."

Clout smiled and stepped forward, crushing me into one of his bear hugs. My vision went blurry as the glasses on my face went askew. I laughed, blinking some tears from my eyes. These two boys were my only friends and I wouldn't replace them for anything. We were all into the same things and we never once got into a fight with each other. Sure, we've had a few bumps along the way but we all managed to get over them and keep moving forward.

Tech laughed and ruffled my hair. Tech was like my big brother. He was the oldest and smartest out of all of us. We were all seventeen; just born at different times of the year. Clout was the brawns of our little group, plus he's always cracking some kind of joke. I was the youngest but that just meant they felt they needed to baby me. I didn't always like it but it made up for the lack of attention my so called parents gave me. Anyways, we were all skilled at something; Tech being the brains and fastest runner, Clout being the brawns and most charming (I actually don't think that should be counted.), and me being self-appointed leader who didn't really have any special talents other than drawing and playing video games… well that's not exactly true. I'm able to pick-pocket and I'm the most agile girl who's come through his class according to my gym teacher but I never thought about putting those talents into good use.

"Aw, our lil' sis is crying!" Clout exclaimed with a big grin on his face. I ducked my head in embarrassment. I was never one to start crying over little things.

"Why the sudden waterworks?" Tech teased.

"Sh-shut up!" I said, glaring at them. Yeah, that lasted about three seconds. We burst out laughing and I fell back into the beanbag chair, wiping tears from my eyes.

"Hehehehe! You guys are the best!" I said. Tech smiled and Clout grinned.

"We know!" they said in unison. Our laughs soon died down and I glanced at the digital clock resting on an old bookshelf we salvaged from the 'Got Junk' people.

"It's almost eleven," I pointed out dully. "You guys better be going now."

"Yeah," Clout sighed and headed for the stairs. "We'll be seeing yeh, Nifty."

I gave a small wave as Clout disappeared down the stairs, closely followed by Tech. The blonde paused, looking like he was debating something in his head. Finally he looked up and said, "Take care of yourself, Jordan."

"Yeah…" Tech followed Clout and I was left alone in the HQ. I wondered why Tech said my real name; we always called each other by our nicknames (or codenames when we were younger).

Our HQ was an old abandoned Hotel that was wedged between two larger buildings that towered over ours. The light up sign outside still flashed 'Hobo Hotel' on occasion but the front doors and windows were all boarded up. No one dared entering the building since we started the rumor that it was haunted. We had a fun time scaring the shit out of anyone who dared enter. It was not until we were almost done grade eight when we decided to start fixing it up. We raided the dump, local garbage bins, and even our own houses for stuff to put in it. You would not believe how much dust, cobwebs, and other junk we shoved into garbage bags before the place looked even remotely clean. It took us the rest of the school year and the whole to get it just the way we wanted. My father had an old TV in the attic I stole and Tech brought a lot of his old electronics that he thought he'd never use again. Clout was in charge of furniture and he got a few of his team members from the lacrosse team to chuck a few pieces of furniture from the junk yard into his dad's pickup. There were also a lot of couches and chairs already in the hotel so all we did was bring in a futon and a few beanbag chairs and we were set. Well, almost. I was walking past Value Village one day when I saw a fridge that was in pretty good shape. It was sitting beside the dumpster so I thought it was going to be taken to the dump. I called up Tech and Clout and we hustle the thing into the truck then drove away. It fit perfectly into our main room and it was soon stalked up with food and drinks, maybe the odd article of clothing but that's another story. Anyways, the next day I was looking at the paper and wouldn't you know there was an article about our fridge! Apparently it was brought outside for delivery and was accidently taken away by the garbage disposal. We laughed our asses off for days about that. Yeah, we've had some pretty good times in this place.

I let out a deep sigh and turn of the black PS3 to exchange the Spiral ROM with Sly Cooper: Band of Thieves. I smile; I have never actually played the second Sly Cooper Game and I was ashamed. I wanted to finish it before the fourth one came out and even though it was a one play game the loneliness settled in even more. The lights in the room were dim and I started getting an uneasy feeling in my gut. As the PS3 rebooted I noticed it had started to rain outside. The wind was whipping around and the dark ominous clouds told me 'thunder storm'. It looked like I would be sleeping at the HQ tonight.

BANG

Letting out a scream I literally jumped a foot into the air, landing on the hardwood floor. My eyes darted around the room nervously. My whole body shook as I stood up and stared at the back wall where our 'La Resistance' flag hung. I am not sure how long I stood there, it had to be at least eight minutes but by the time I sat back down the title screen was on; just waiting for me to begin. Trying to forget about the noise and storm, I started the game and a smile slowly made its way onto my face. It soon turned into a wide grin as I got into the game and readjusted to the controls. Sly was my favourite character. My second favourite was Murray. I always found Bentley a bit derpy… Our personas were actually all based off of Sly Cooper and the gang when we were younger. Tech was obviously Bentley (just not as derpy), Clout was Murray, and I was Sly. We used to run around the school yard pretending to be our characters. It's a wonder why I haven't gotten to playing Sly Cooper 2…

CRASH

Screaming in fright and frustration, I jumped up as all the power in the HQ went out. The other electronics and fridge came back on, which I was happy about, but the lights, TV, and PS3 were another thing. I stumbled around in the darkness and eventually found the light switch. It clicked as I flipped it but the lights stayed off. Growling, I tripped back over to the TV and used the light of my phone to find the PS3 was unplugged. Puzzled over it until my phone made that familiar noise, meaning it was dead. I had to face palm at that; things just weren't going my way tonight. I felt around until I found the cord and jabbed it into the wall, hoping I would get it into the outlet at one point or another.

The next part happened so fast and not to mention painful, it was hard to recall what happened but I do remember the widow swinging open and water drenching the whole room just as I found the outlet. There was a bright painful flash before everything went black. When I woke up I found myself blearily staring into the eyes of wiry furred rat. There was a red barrette on its head and other French articles of clothing. I blacked out again.

When I said 'I was getting into the game' I didn't mean literally!

**Well, this is my first Sly Cooper fic. This is actually inspired by **XMimiBelleX's **fanfic, **Wonderland**. I agree with her statement that there aren't many 'sucked-into-the-game fics and so I decided to write one. Um, yeah, so review and leave feedback on how you like it and go read her story, it's awesome! Hopefully the next chapter will be up tomorrow. If I'm not to busy watching HUNGER GAMES! Hehehe, so yeah, bye!**


	2. Inner Fangirl

**Hullo! Chaptah two! Sorry I didn't get this out earlier but I was too busy fangirling over the Hunger Games. It was flap flippin tastic! I just don't like who played Gale though. And Katniss was too tall... Anyways, yeah, enjoy chapter two!**

Sly Cooper: Band of Animals

Chapter 2

"Nnn… Ow…" I let out a painful groan as I woke up. My body started to ached all over and my head was killing me. I went to put my hand on my head when I saw it was covered dark brown _fur_ with lighter coloured pads. I froze and stared. Moving my other hand next to the first one, I saw the same result.

_OK, this definitely isn't normal,_ I thought a bit stupidly. Pulling my gaze away from my hands, I looked around at my surroundings. I was sitting on a pale yellow couch with a thin blanket haphazardly draped over me. The room I was in had a door to my right and there were three very large windows placed one after another. In the middle of the room sat a circular dining table with three chairs and a pink table cloth. Over to the side of it was a wooden crate with a laptop on it. There were a variety of potted plants shoved into one corner and there were several junk food wrappers scattered around the place. It wasn't the neatest of places but it reminded me of the HQ.

"The HQ!" I slapped my forehead, remembering how the rain had drenched the whole room. "Maaan, that's going to be a pain in the arse to clean up!"

Swinging my feet over the edge of the couch, I stood up with my head and vision swimming. I clenched my eyes closed and shook my head to try and clear it. My eyes widened when they opened and spotted an anthropomorphic weasel looking thing staring at my through the window. I squeak and backed up, tripping over the low back of the couch and smashing into a potted plant. Greeeaat…

"Whoa!" A pink hippo and derpy looking turtle came rushing into the room and spotted me lying, dazed, on the floor. They stared at me as I shook the damp soil from my hair which to my relief was still hazel with red streaks.

"Are you OK?" asked the hippo. I scratched my head and looked up at them, very confused. Wait a minute, was that Murray?

"Uh, I guess…"

"You worried us for a bit, little guy!" the hippo said, pulling me up.

"Murray's right," So it _is_ Murray! "We saw a gang of those dirty lookout rats gathering around you."

"Yeah! And Sly and I went and knocked them all out. When we brought you back to the hideout Bentley said you were pretty badly injured and you might need to go to the hospital or something!" exclaimed Murray, using over exaggerated hand gestures for emphasis.

"Well, I'm OK. I mean, my whole body aches but I don't feel drastically ill or anything." I explained, rubbing my arm which was covered in brown fur as well. Now that I think about it, that weasel creature in the window was probably my reflection…

"That's a relief!" said Murray, smiling. I looked at him and a toothy grin appeared on my face. Seeing him made me think of Clout. "So, what's your name?"

"Me? I'm Nifty." I said.

"That's an interesting name." Bentley said.

"I think it's pretty cool!" said Murray.

"Thanks, but it's not my real name." I explained.

"So what _is_ your real name?" Bentley asked.

I think my ear twitched at that question. I wasn't sure but I know I felt something. "I really don't have a problem with my actual name but I'd rather you call me Nifty."

"We're perfectly fine with that." said Murray.

"So, where's Sly?" I asked, maybe a bit too eagerly. Bentley, who had gone to his laptop, looked up at me in surprise.

"Do you know him?" he asked.

"Er… well only through newspaper articles and stuff." I said thinking quickly. "Y-you guys are pretty famous. I mean, well, I don't know… yeah."

Murray and Bentley exchanged odd glances before they both shrugged and went back to doing what they were doing. I sat down on the couch and sat there awkwardly before Bentley decided to answer my question.

"Sly is out tailing Dimitri." he said.

"You mean the nightclub owner?" I asked, looking up from my tail. I was glad neither Bentley nor Murray saw me inspecting it. It'd just make things even more awkward than they already were.

"Yes, we're pulling a heist to get the Clockwerk Tail Feathers. We found out that one of the doors beside the main canal leads to the water pump room." Bentley explained.

I felt a chill run down my spine. I knew how much of a menace Clockwerk was from that first game. Oh yeah, I'm in the second game right now. I scratched my head. It seemed so real though. The tip of my tail twitched in irritation as I started to over think thing and that was a never good thing for me. My head started to hurt whenever I did that.

"Do you guys need any help?" I asked, tugging at my ear. Bentley turned around and gave me a weird look when he saw me pulling my ear. I laughed nervously and put my hands in the pockets of my hoodie.

"You _want _to help us?" he asked incredulously.

"Well I have nothing better to do," I shrugged. "Plus I think you guys are really cool. I mean, you've avoided the police all this time! And you make it look so easy!"

"Come one, Bentley! I think it'd be cool to have a new team member, especially one who's such a big fan of ours!" Murray said, ruffling my head. He and I looked at the turtle with the same pleading look.

"We'll have to see what Sly says, but I'm OK with her addition." I beamed and Murray and I high-fived. This was going to be so cool! Hanging out with my favourite video game characters of all time! I couldn't wait until Sly got back.

oooOOOooo

"Good job tailing him, Sly. He had no idea you were watching while he typed in the secret code." I listened intently as Bentley talked to Sly while he typed away at his laptop. "… Wait a minute, looks like that door leads to the nightclub's aqua pump! Hmm… this might be useful for the heist."

"How does an aqua pump help us?" I asked, jumping up to sit on the table.

Bentley adjusted his glasses and gave me a sly smirk. "This is where you need to start thinking outside the box."

I raised my eyebrow. Murray came up beside me and said, "Trust him; he knows what he's doing."

"Who does?" We all turned to see Sly Cooper standing at the door. A wide grin spread across my face in an instant. I hopped off the table and ran up to Sly with my hand out.

"Sly Cooper! It's an honor!" I exclaimed. All three of the Cooper gang members gave me a weird look. Sly chuckled and took my hand and shook it.

"I see you're awake and doing well." he said.

I nodded. "Mhmm!"

"Murray, I need you to head over to the aqua pump room. I'll fill you in on your mission when you get there." said Bentley. I rolled my eye; he's just like Tech, always wanting to get down to business.

"Roger! 'The Murray' is on the job!" I watched in mild amusement as Murray left the hideout to do his job at the aqua pump.

"So, Nifty, you want to join the Cooper Gang do you?" I blinked in surprise and looked at Sly.

"How do you…?"

"Bentley left the mic on his laptop on, so I heard the whole conversation." he said, sitting down in one of the chairs and putting his feet up on the table. I sat in the chair beside him with my chin resting on the back of it.

"I would be honored to be a member of the Cooper Gang. You guys are my heroes!" I said excitedly.

"I don't see why not," I felt my ears twitch in excitement. "But," Aw. "We need to see what you're capable of."

"Like an assessment?" I asked, tilting my head.

"Precisely." answered Bentley, joining our conversation.

"So what are some of your talents?" Sly asked, flicking a piece of dirt from his cane.

I tapped the chair in thought. I was not sure if they would find my drawing skills so impressive. "Well… I can make a mean steak and cheese sandwich…"

The two exchanged glances before Sly asked, "Anything else?"

"I'm a good pick-pocket," At this, the racoon blinked in interest. "I mean, I'm not a wizard at it or anything, but I was able to slip this girl's twenty bucks from her back pocket of a pair of skinny jeans."

"Are you strong?"

"I'm no Murray," I said. "But I'm agile and one of the top students in my gym class."

"How about your technological skills?" asked Bentley.

"Um… I'm really good at playing video games and I know how to hack a computer and… stuff." I said, remembering the time Tech taught me how to hack into the school's computers to change my two week detention to one day.

"She sounds promising." Sly said, standing up and walking over to a fridge I had not notice until now.

"Nifty will be useful in speeding up some of the missions." commented Bentley.

"So when's my test?" I asked, anxious to get moving.

Bentley turned back to his laptop. "Once Murray gets back from destroying that aqua pump I should have most of the plan figured out. Then I'll send you out with Sly for your assessment."

I straightened up and rested my arms on the back of the chair. "I'll be ready!"

**So. How did you like it? Don't worry, they'll be a lot more action than this. There's a lot of dialog in this chapter and I'm not sure I like it but whatever. Please review and leave your feedback! Thankies!**


	3. Pickpocket Party Time

**Hello, and welcome to chapter three of Sly Cooper: Band of Animals! I'm your host and author, CMilk!**

**?:** And I'm your narrator, the one and only, Nifty! -bows-

**Ahem.**

**Nifty: **Sorry.

**Reviews:**

lazy4ever: **It's amazing! Aaand, updated! X3**

escamval13 (Chap 1): **Thank you!**

**Anyways, on to the chapter!**

Sly Cooper: Band of Animals

Chapter 3

"_OK you two, there are the power boxes which route to the printing press area. To take care of them I'll need Sly to put a splice clip on those spotlights."_

"Sorry, Bentley, but those fans are spinning _way _too fast to walk on." said Sly. I had no clue where we were, all I know is it took all I had to keep up with Sly in order to get here. We were on a balcony overlooking a dining area. There was a stage for musical artists and other types of performers.

"_They can be slowed down from that control panel… but you'll have to do a lot of pickpocketing to get at it. This is where you come in, Nifty, so pay attention." _I pressed the small headphone closer to my ear. _"The guards are carrying special fragile keys that will be destroyed if you attack. Make sure you pickpocket their keys _before _you take those thugs out."_

I snorted. "And how am I supposed to take them out?" I asked into the mouthpiece.

"I'll take care of that." said Sly. Nodding, I headed to my left where I jumped on top of a dining table's mini balcony then carefully made my way across the pipe. I jumped back onto the balcony behind the guard and spotted the small pouch on his waist. As I pulled out a few coins I became aware that my ears were flattened, my tail was stiff, and I was so low to the ground I was practically crawling. I found it a bit weird but I didn't shift positions because it seemed to be working. Finally, after pulling out maybe six coins I reached the key. I smirked triumphantly and turned to Sly with a proud grin on my face. The racoon smiled and went up to the guard. In one smooth motion he had the guard up in the air. I stared as he jumped up and smashed the warthog into the floor, knocking him out for the time being.

"Let's split up, we'll get this done faster with the two of us going after the keys." Sly said.

"But how am I supposed to take out the guards?" I asked. "They're like three times my size!"

"You don't have to knock them out. It'll just be a little harder to get around, that's all." he said, shrugging. I looked at him skeptically.

"Uh, huh. Right."

"Look, these guys aren't the sharpest tools in the shed. If you keep out of their flashlight then you're good to go." Before I could argue Sly gave me a reassuring smile and jumped off the balcony.

Letting out an exasperated sigh, I headed towards the control box and turned left. There was a guard at the bottom of the stairs I got a key from but had no idea of how to get rid of him. There was another guard patrolling back stage as well and he and the guy I just pickpocketed were practically on top of each other. Climbing the stairs I stopped hallway and watched the guards walk in the same direction. Seeing this as my chance, I jumped from where I was and landed right behind him. He stopped and I froze. The guard sniffed around but apparently his nose wasn't that good (or he wasn't very bright like Sly had said) and he continued walking. I wanted to get this done fast so I ignored the coins I pulled out and made a mental note to do a victory dance when we got back to the safe house. I was about to leave when a thought crossed my mind. It was probably a spur of the moment thing and I didn't realize how stupid it was. Instead of going to get Sly I jumped up and whacked the guard in the back of the head. Landing, I realized it didn't have the desired effect and the warthog turned around and hit me with his giant bazooka gun thing. I was sent flying across the room and smashed into one of the clothes racks. Jackets were sent flying everywhere as I landed. I looked up in time to see a red ball of energy hurtling pass me, only missing my head by a few millimeters.

"I'll take my leave now!" I yelled, scrambling out of the pile of clothes. The guards kept shooting as I made a breakaway towards the stairs. Just as I thought I was going to outrun them, a guard dropped from out of _nowhere_ and aimed his gun right at my face. I sidestepped him, roll, and grabbed his pouch on the way up. I blinked as I ran up the stairs, taking two at a time, how the heck did I just do that?

I skidded to a stop when I got to the control box. Sly was standing there waiting for me with that cocky grin he always wears. I put my hand on the box in order to steady myself as I tried to catch my breath. Sly raised his eyebrow in question. I motioned to the other room where three guards where appearing in the doorway. Sly jumped into action and managed to take them all out while I watched with amusement in my eyes.

"You could've helped you know." he said afterwards as I unlocked the six locks keeping the control box closed. I just shrugged and kept my face towards my work so he wouldn't see the grin on my face.

"_Looks like the fans have stopped. Use 'em to get on top of the main chandelier and insert that splice clip."_ I watched as Sly jumped from fan to fan and finally onto the chandelier. All of a sudden these red bullets came from the chandelier and shot both power boxes and the spotlights that hung over the stage.

"Cool…" I breathed.

"_That should do it! No more security in the printing press room." _I heard a click and the static noise disappeared from my ear. I opened the door for Sly and followed him out. It was on our way to the Safe House when a pink cat dropped in front of us.

"Hold it, Cooper!" Sly straightened up and grinned. Doesn't he get a sore back from bending over all the time?

"Constable Neyla, another police woman hot on my tail." Sly said, crossing his arms.

"Please, I lead you here." she said matter-o-factly. I narrowed my eyes and Sly shifted positions.

"So that Klaww Gang slip _was _a clue…" He paused then said, "Why are you helping me out?"

"I'm not as black and white as Carmelita. I know what a menace those Clockwerk parts are and I don't want the likes of the Klaww Gang putting them to use."

Sly opened his mouth to say something but I cut in first. "So you're saying it takes a thief to catch a thief?"

Neyla seemed to only notice me then. She turned my way and put on a thoughtful smile. "Something like that." She turned back to Sly. "But, if I'm going to trust you in this case I need to know that you can keep up… literally."

Sly and I exchanged glances. "Literally?"

"Don't fall behind." Neyla said, pointing her whip at us. I made a face, what kind of police officer has a whip? I didn't get a chance to think about it because Neyla turned tail and ran. Sly took off after her and I was left there with a dumbstruck look on my face.

"Wait… HEY! WAIT UP!" I bolted after them. Thankfully this yellow stuff was flying from Neyla's pouch so I could catch up with them.

I stumbled a few times and had to run along the street after them once and a while cause I had no idea how to walk across a rope without seriously injuring myself but I managed to keep up. I was pretty proud of myself when I joined them in front, or I should say back, of the disco hall.

"Well done, Sly, we should work well together." Neyla said.

Sly smirked. "Glad you approve."

"H-hey… what… about… hah… me?" I panted, putting my hands on my knees.

Neyla's eyebrows arched in amusement. She motioned to me with her whip. "Is this your kit?"

Sly laughed when I choked on my own spit. I sent him a glare before going off into a corner to finish coughing.

"No, we saved her from a gang of rats." he said.

Neyla nodded. "And you trust her?"

"Why shouldn't we?" Sly asked.

"It's not wise to trust someone you don't know completely, especially if you're in a life threatening situation and they're your only hope." A low growl came out of my throat as I glared at Neyla. I didn't like her one bit, not to mention she mistook _me_ as _Sly's _kit! I'm only three years younger _and_ not to mention I'm a marten of some kind. _Not_ a racoon!

"Well if that time ever comes I'd like to think Nifty would save me." Sly said, crossing his arms.

"Suite yourself," Neyla said, waving her hand dismissively as she changed the subject. "Now, _legally_ I can't enter Dimitri's nightclub without a warrant… but I happened to have obtained the key to his back door… which a person like yourself can use however he pleases."

"Oh we are absolutely going to work well together."

oooOOOooo

"I don't see why you don't like Constable Neyla." Sly said. We've been arguing over her since we got back to the Safe House.

"Because! She's up to something. I don't trust her! My tail was twitching the whole time we were with her!" I said, pointing at my tail. Sly laughed.

"You'd be more persuasive if you didn't sound like your tail had turrets." he said, grabbing a water bottle from the fridge. I sat down grumpily on a chair and crossed my arms.

"I'm telling you, Sly, she's going to stab you in the back and when she does I'll be there laughing and saying 'I told you so'."

Sly rolled his eyes. "She's helping us get the Clockwerk parts. What more do you want from her?"

"Ayiyiyi!" I smacked my forehead against the table. "What will it take for me to persuade you she's _evil_?"

"How about a kiss?" I looked up and glared daggers at him. He sat down beside me with a devilish grin on his face.

"How about you go test that 'trust' theory Neyla came up with? See if she'll save you from Carmelita's Shock Pistol or something." I retorted. Sly just laughed.

How did he end up being my favourite character?

**I'd like to thank **lazy4ever **and **escamval13 **for being my first two reviewers and all you anonymous readers. Thanks guys, you rock! Well, see you next time on, Sly Cooper: Band of Animals! Please review and have a good day!  
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	4. The Clockwerk Tail Feathers

**Sorry for the wait!**

**Reviews:**

**lazy4ever: I had fun writing it. :)**

XMimiBellX: Yay! -happy dance-

**Sarah Victoria Cullen: Thank you!**

escamval13: I'm glad you like it so much! ^W^

Sly Cooper: Band of Animals

Chapter 4

"OK fellas, the dominos are all in place; time to pull off the big heist. First, Murray will help me break into the old water tower. From there, I should be able to shut down the plaza fountain. Dimitri's sure to send someone out to get the repair truck. Nifty, you'll pickpocket the trucks keys off this guy once he shows up then hand them off to me and Murray in the plaza. We'll go steal the truck while Sly climbs to the top of the nightclub peacock sign. Once you're in position, Murray will fire the truck's winch line up to you and we'll use it to pull down the sign. If my calculations are correct the impact should create an entrance to the printing press room. Then, Sly, you jump in, grab the Clockwerk tail feathers and we all get the heck out of here!"

Once Bentley was done briefing us on the plan we all moved out to our positions. I watched from the roof of the Safe House as Murray tossed Bentley up onto the blocked entrance of the water tower. He set a bomb down and blew up the blockage before getting tossed back up. It was not very long before I heard the spray of the fountain disappear. I turned and headed towards the nightclub. I waited on a nearby roof and watched a warthog guard walk out.

"_All right, Nifty, you're up!"_ Bentley said. I followed along on the roof and waited for the two guard rats to wander away before jumping down and pickpocketing the keys.

"Here!" I tossed the keys at Murray.

"Thanks pal. C'mon Bentley, let's head for the repair truck!" Murray ran ahead with the turtle hot on his heels.

"Get up onto one of the roofs. You can keep lookout from there." I watched Sly climb safely to the top of the peacock sign before heading over to one of the building's roofs.

My ears swivelled in the direction of the repair truck as it drove up to the plaza. I could hear Murray's instructions to Sly boom from the speaker on the truck. I watched him shoot the winch line up to Sly who caught it and attached the grapple to the peacock's beak. He then slid down the line and landed on the truck.

"Guys, the guards are onto us! Protect the truck!" I jumped down from the roof and tackled one of the guard rats, knocking him to the pavement. I straightened up and saw Sly taking care of three rats with his cane. He was too busy to notice two more sneak up behind him. I rushed forward and knocked both their heads together. They fell to the ground, out cold.

"Thanks!" he said. I grinned and headed back towards the truck. I spotted a fairly large rat getting ready to smash the back of the truck with a baseball bat. I narrowed my eyes and jumped onto the hood of the car. Bentley let out a surprised yell that echoed through the speaker as I rolled over the top of the truck and lunged at the rat. He was taken completely by surprise, the bat flying out of his hand as I tackled him to the ground. A few more rats later and the peacock sign crashed into the fountain. Water and cement flew everywhere as a large hole revealed the printing press room.

"Behold the majesty of gravity and inertia!" Bentley said, throwing his arms up in victory.

"That was real subtle, Bentley." Sly said as I stifled a giggled.

"OK, you jump in, grab the Clockwerk tail feathers, and we're out of here!" Sly nodded and jumped into the hole.

"Oh, can I go with him?" I asked. "Just in case he needs backup?"

"Alright, just stay out of his way unless he asks for your-"

"Bentley! We've got guards comin' from all over the place!" Murray exclaimed, jumping out of the truck. Bentley and I turned to see rat guards coming from everywhere. They surrounded the whole plaza.

"This isn't right," said Bentley. "Nifty, go check on Sly! Something's wrong!" I nodded and leaped in after the racoon.

oooOOOooo

I looked up and spotted Sly and Dimitri as I entered the main area of the printing press room. The Clockwerk tail feathers were attached to some money making machine that was very loud and hurt my ears.

"Gah! So… Racoonus Doodus- you're like totally bumming my house up and bringing down. So very uncool. Why can't you just let birds and bees be free, bro?" I almost laughed at Dimitri's vocabulary. I loved it! Maybe I should start talking like that…

"Listen Dimitri- you have no idea what you're playing with- it'll bring more than your house down…" Sly said seriously.

"Listen, bro. I see that you are a tough cowboy… A man with taste… style… vision… a connoisseur of finer things. Like me." I snorted. "Look, I'm sure that two cats in a bag like us can work something out, yeah? We smoove, yeah? Look… see the money? You like the money? You can take all you want. I can-"

"No deal," said Sly, taking a step forward. "You and the rest of the Klaww Gang _have_ to be stopped. Clockwerk will never again see the light of day. Just hand over the tail feathers and we can-"

"Yeah, Sly!" I yelled out loud. They both turned and saw me. "Oops…" I covered my mouth.

Dimitri bit down hard on his cigarette. "What is this with clocks, bro? Have you no vision? Are you hearing what I beam to you? You think you have juice? Don't show me a little mind when talking about such big things… You think you can swing the bat? Show your bling and let me shine you!"

My ear twitched as I tried to figure out what Dimitri had just said. Sly seemed to be thinking the same thing when he said, "I have no idea what you're saying. And your suite sucks!" he added as an afterthought.

"Aiiiiiiiieeee! Let's dance!" Sly jumped into action as Dimitri disappeared to the other side of the room in a flash of purple powder. I was about to jump up to help when something pulled on my tail and sent me flying. I let out a pained yell as I hit the wall and slid to the ground.

"Nifty!" I opened my eyes and saw a giant black rat walking towards me. He had two little cronies on either side of him with evil smirks on their ugly faces.

"Bonjour, ma fleur magnifique." the rat said. I made a face and stuck my tongue out. Did he just call me a beautiful flower?

Instead of answering I spat at his feet then rolled to my left. I stood up unsteadily and glared at the rats. The cronies glared back, their teeth bared, while the big one let out a hearty laugh. He walked towards me and put his gnarled looking hand up to stop his followers. Letting out a warning growl, I back up until I bumped into one of the support poles that kept the glass floor the printing press was on up.

"You're a feisty one, aren't you?" he said, grinning.

"Don't call me feisty, you old sewer swimmer." I growled. His eye twitched but he kept his composure. "Who are you anyways?"

"Ah, don't you remember me, ma cheri? I am the one who saved you from being electrocuted!" He says it as if it's obvious. Damn rat.

"The story I heard was that I was saved from your cronies." I said, looking for a way to escape. The rat laughed bitterly and took another step closer. I pressed my back closer to the pole in an attempt to put some distance between me and his horrible garbage breath.

"They get excited, c'est tout." he said innocently. I gagged in response and tried to run away but the rat grabbed my arm and pulled me close to him. I wanted to heave as my muzzle got pushed into his thick greasy fur. It smelt like garbage mixed with Clout's dirty hockey gear and the washroom in 'Burrito Land' after the lunch time rush-hour. Trust me, you don't wanna know.

"Geddoff me!" I demanded, struggling in his grip. The rat snickered and buried his nose in my neck fur.

"Didn't you hear here? She said get off!" I gasped for breath as the rat was sent staggering back. Sly grabbed me around the waist and jumped back a few feet. I looked up and saw the rat's hand clutching the right side of his face. He glared at us, his yellow eyes on fire.

I let out a warning growl when he started to advance towards us. I was fully aware that Sly still had his arm around me and I was wary but there were more important things to worry about at the moment. I flinched slightly as the racoon's grip tightened and he jumped back just in time for us to dodge a punch from the rat. The floor that we were just standing on was smashed to bits and his punch left a small crater. Was there a chance he was _stronger _than Murray?

"Get back here you Cracker-Box!" yelled Dimitri, waving his gun around. I slipped out of Sly's hold and put some space between us.

"You focus on Dimitri," I said in answer to his questioning glance. "You need to get those tail feathers. And don't worry about sewer breath here. I can handle him."

"Be careful." he said I nodded and we jumped apart as Dimitri fired a shot at us.

"I'll snap you and that pretty faced racoon in half!" the rat exclaimed, pounding his fist into his hand.

"Come at me bro!" I said cockily. "Vous êtes juste un nageur d'égout faible!"

Roaring in anger, he charged at me. Luckily his large build restrained him from running too fast and I was able to dodge his punch. His cronies tried to attack me but I easily took them both out with a hard punch in the gut and knocking the other's head into one of the support poles.

"You're all alone," I said. "No cronies to back you up."

I pricked my ears when I saw his mouth moving but nothing coming out. I caught snippets of French swears and let out a long whistle. He looked up and glared. I sent him a cocky grin and crossed my arms. This just sent him over the edge and he exploded with anger. I squeak and ducked when he picked up a glass table and threw it at me. It hit the wall and smashed into millions of pieces.

"Whoa, calm down!" I yelled, dodging a tank of weird green liquid.

"I'll kill you, you weasel!" he roared. I was taken by surprise when he charged at me and actually jumped up, turned, and hit me with his tail. I was sent flying right into Dimitri. He pushed me off him right into the rat's clutches. He wrapped his arm around my neck and I struggled but I knew it was useless, he could break my neck anytime he wanted; I was at his complete mercy.

"Let go of her!"

"Don't move or the lady gets it!" Dimitri said, pointing his gun at me. Sly stopped and glared at the lizard. I kept kicking and managed to get the rat where-the-sun-don't-shine and he squeak in pain, letting me go as he slid to the floor. Dimitri angrily face-palmed while I staggered over to Sly, coughing.

The lizard dropped his gun and made a break for the printing press. Sly ran after him and charged a goldish-coloured energy ball with his cane. He hit Dimitri and the lizard flew into the printing press. Ink and the Clockwerk tail feathers flew everywhere as the press broke and Dimitri was tossed in the waste bin beside it. His surprisingly still had his cigarette after all that. I had to give him points for that.

"You take Clockwerk tail feathers and my counterfeiting operation, it's past tense." Dimitri said in anguish.

"I'm doing you a favor. What kind of thief prints money?... there's no honor in that." Sly said, shaking his head.

"You… Cracker-Box! Ahh…" I snorted at Dimitri's insult and went over towards the hole that the peacock statue made.

"Sly! Grab the tail feathers so we can get out of here!" I yelled. The Racoon picked up the feathers just as Bentley and Murray entered the room. We made it up to the catwalk overlooking the whole operation. The printing press was ruined and Dimitri and the rat were taken care of.

Sly and the gang had done it. The Clockwerk tail feathers were theirs and Dimitri's counterfeiting operation was 'past-tense'. Due to the untimely arrival of Carmelita, our escape got a little tricky. Not to mention she crashed a police truck through the wall of the building. Angry at having just missed Sly, she took it out on Dimitri; shutting down the nightclub and throwing the frustrated forger behind bars. We headed out of town for a week in Monoco. Sly figured the team earned themselves a well-deserved break and I had to agree with that one.

**I don't know if I like this chapter very much, especially the fight between Nifty and the rat... Oh well, tell me how you like it and if I should rewrite it. So, tune in next time where we go to India and have Indian food! Yummy!**


	5. Just Keep Swimming

**It's kind of short but enjoy!**

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Sly Cooper: Band of Animals

Chapter 5

"Nnn…" I groaned loudly as the back doors of the Cooper Van were opened, ducking under the old blanket to get away from the sun. It wasn't that bright out, the sun had just started to peak over the horizon, but it was enough to hurt my poor eyes. I was not a morning person and did not plan to be one in the near future.

"Come on, Nifty, push over and make some room." I felt a pat on my shoulder as Sly hopped into the back with me. I peered out from under the blanket and caterpillared over to the opposite side. Grabbing my bag that I had gotten at a gift shop in Monaco, I dug around for my glasses and the blurriness disappeared.

"I know you're not a morning person, but is hiding under a blanket really necessary?" Sly asked, yawning when he was finished. I rolled my eyes.

"You're nocturnal aren't you?" I said, pulling the cloth closer. "If anything, you're the one who should be hiding from the sun."

Sly chuckled and stretched, resting his feet beside my head. My nose wrinkled; I hope he washed them. "You're right, I usually sleep during the day; we all do, but we don't cocoon ourselves in a blanket."

Instead of answering, I stuck out my tongue then ducked under the blanket. I heard him laugh and move his legs. What was that racoon doing…? Suddenly the blanket disappeared and I let out a loud groan. All three members of the gang laughed and I sat up, rubbing my eyes and making my glasses go askew. Sly ruffled my already horrible bedhead then threw the blanket around his shoulders, leaning against the side of the van, crossing his legs, and closing his eyes. Letting out a defeated sigh, I looked out the window at the passing scenery.

Another Clockwerk part had surfaced in India so the gang loaded up the van and we zeroed in on our next target; a mysterious spice lord known as, Rajan. A self-named man who grew up poor on the streets of Calcutta, he started his life of crime selling illegal spices in the black market, eventually growing a small outfit to a sizable operation and earning himself a seat in the prestigious Klaww Gang. He since crowned himself 'Lord of the Hills' and while he goes to great lengths to convince others of his royalty, it's mostly to convince himself. True to form, he's holding a lavish ball in his newly purchased 'Ancestral Palace'. The reason? To show off his latest acquisition, the Clockwerk wings. Sly said they were a symbol of his enemy and if you saw the wings silhouetted against the night sky it was already too late for you, especially if your name was Cooper. Rajan believes displaying the wings will bring him prestige. And, maybe they will, but they're also bringing the Cooper Gang.

We were headed out of civilization to Rajan's palace in the middle of the jungle. It was a three hour drive to the small village where we would leave the van, camouflaged of course, and set out on a tedious hike into the jungle. Why someone would go to a ball in the middle of nowhere was beyond me but it was where the Clockwerk wings were so we didn't really have a choice. Hopefully there won't be any giant rats there…

oooOOOooo

"Alright, Sly, head over to the left of the Safe House until you reach the water's edge. I'll fill you in once you get there." I frowned and saw up in the chair.

"How come I can't go?" I asked. Sly paused at the top of the stone steps to hear Bentley's answer.

"The only way to get across to the other side of the moat is Sly's Ninja Spire Jump." the turtle answered, typing away at his laptop. I stood up and pranced over to Sly. The racoon gave me a confused look.

"Don't worry, I'll figure a way over!" I grinned and pushed Sly towards the stairs. Our Safe House was actually a cabana like thing on the high ledge of a cliff. The stairs led through the cliff and out into a small area that was patrolled by one of Rajan's elephants.

Sly and I stayed in the shadow of the cliff and headed over to our left side, past the Cooper Van, and to the water's edge. Sly took out his binocucom and I turned on my small headset. I could hear Bentley ask Sly if he remembered how to spire jump and true to his nature, Sly came up with a witty remark then their attention turned to me.

"_OK, Nifty, now do you think you can get across?_" Bentley asked, confident he had proven me wrong.

"Tch, of course! The current doesn't look that strong; I could probably swim." I said, happy with my answer. I heard Bentley snort and Sly looked at me as if I had grown two heads.

"You're not serious, are you?" he asked, eyeing the water.

"Why not?" I asked pulling off my black hoodie and throwing it at him. I was glad I had picked up a few extra sets of clothes when I was in Monaco and that set included a pair of waterproof shorts and a tank top.

"_Don't mind him,_" said Bentley. "_He doesn't like the water much._"

"Meh, doesn't involve me," I said shrugging. "Now let's go!"

Before the racoon could object, I dove into the water. A shiver wracked my body; I hadn't expected the water to be so cold, but it felt good compared to the intense heat of the jungle. As I came up, I shook the water from my head and saw Sly landing on a small island with a palm tree on it. He pointed to a gold pipe leading up the side of the wall. I nodded and swam over, hauling myself out of the water.

"Hey!" Sly grumbled something incoherent as we reached the top. I just giggled and watched him wring his hat out before wetting him even more by shaking the excess water from my fur.

"Who goes there?" Our heads snapped up and we spotted a rhino guard pounding over to where we were. We both turned and darted away before we were in sight of the flashlight. I follow Sly along the wall but stopped when we came to a large gap and a tightrope.

"What's wrong?" he asked, pausing in the middle. "Scared?"

I scoffed. "Psh, no! I just don't know how to run across a tightrope."

"Come on, it's easy! Just run across!" he said, taking a few steps forward for an example. I rolled my eyes.

"Yeah right."

Sly sighed and jumped back onto the wall with me. "I thought weasels were supposed to be more nimble than racoons?"

I sent a glare at him. "First of all, I'm a _pine marten._" He held his hands up in defence. "And second of all, I'm not as nimble as I look."

"Really now?" I crossed my arms and nodded. Next thing I knew I was out on the rope. I yelled as my foot slipped and I fell, hugging the rope in desperation. Sly let out a laugh and stepped onto the rope, stopping and crouching when he reached me.

"I hate you so much." I growled. Sly flashed me a smile before straightening up. I grabbed the rope with my hands and climbed across upside-down. Sly helped me up and we made it over to part of the palace that was surrounded by a bunch of foliage and had a giant bonfire thing in front of it. What the heck was that doing there?

"_I figured out how to sneak in above the ballroom without being detected. The only problem is there's no way to climb up to the balcony door._" said Bentley.

"Not a problem," said Sly. "There seem to be plenty of branches for me to walk on… I'll figure it out."

During their conversation I wandered over to one of the trees and climbed onto one of the branches. I crawled along it then jumped to the one a few feet away then the next. A few leaves fell and fluttered down towards Sly. He looked up and spotted me on the bow overhead.

"How did you…?" I giggled and shook a few more leaves from the branch.

"I might not be a good tightrope walker but I'm and excellent tree climber!"

oooOOOooo

"Stealing the Clockwerk Wings in the middle of a crowded ballroom is going to take some serious misdirection and the squad of undercover cops makes things even more complicated, although we may be able to use them to our advantage. But no matter what we do in the ballroom, sooner or later we'll need to deal with Rajan's security chopper. Murray can take it out with some of the local armaments, but he won't be able to get inside the palace until Sly and Nifty lowers the drawbridge for him." Sly and I got ready to head back out as Bentley wrapped up his slideshow.

"Ready for more pickpocketing?" Sly asked. I grinned.

"Of course!" I turned back to the other two. "We'll see you guys on the flipside!"

Sly bonked me on the head with his cane. "If you start talking like Dimitri I swear…"

**Askjdnljsdnd... I don't have much to say. Anyways, read and review!**

~CMilk out!


	6. In Which Nothing Really Happens

**Hi. See ya at the bottom.**

**Reviews: (please read last one)**

**Sara Victoria Cullen:** Nifty: -bows- Thank you, thank you! Tell your little sister that if she acts just like me then her life will be bawlin' and she will be able to climb on ropes!

-sweat dropped- Nifty, that doesn't make any sense.

**XMimiBelleX: **O/A/O -updates-

**S.R.J.S. Fangirl from PI: **-takes deep and counts down from 10- I'm sorry you don't like my story but authors are never going to be able to please everyone. Also, please don't say you're a critiquing my work when you leave your review with incomplete words and improper grammer and puctuation. I'm not sure why you left me with your four biggest fandoms because out of all of them I only write for Sly Cooper and this next part is rather important. Please do not and I repeat _**do**** not** _advertise your acount and stories on my own in a review. I do not appreciate it and I'm sure no one else would and truthfully it's rather annoying and offensive. If you really want to get people to check out your works I suggest using forums or Communities, not people's stories. Reviews are for feedback and critiques, remember that. Last thing, I will be removing your review. Do not review again with the same content or anything similiar because it will reported. To my other readers, I'm sorry about ranting about this but I think it's important that I point this out. Authors, artists, and other kinds of people work hard on their works and it's rude and inconsiderate if or when people advertise their own works. Thanks for all your consideration.

Sly Cooper: Band of Animals

Chapter 6

Even though I had gotten some pickpocket practice back in Paris, I was still a bit rusty and it took me quite a while to get my three keys. Let's just say it's hard to concentrate when Sly keeps grumbling about poisonous snakes and I couldn't shut my headset off. I was back at the Safe House playing 'Things' with Murray (I guess you could call reading the question then blurting out answers off the tops of our heads playing) while Sly headed to the ballroom for his dancing. I didn't even know that raccoon could dance… except for the voodoo boss fight in the first game.

"Things you shouldn't lick." Murray said. I tapped my chin then my face went completely blank.

"Sly's feet." I said.

Both the turtle and hippo laughed. I frowned and told them I was being completely serious; although just made them laugh harder.

"_What's so funny?" _Sly asked, his voice crackling through the mic on Bentley's laptop.

"Your mom!" I yelled before Bentley could answer. I saw the raccoon roll his eyes before telling the turtle about his predicament.

"Sorry Sly, somehow I totally overlooked the need for formal wear. That guy's not going to let you in without a tuxedo." he sighed.

"Don't beat yourself up Bentley…" Sly said. "At a party this ritzy there has to be a spare penguin suite around here somewhere."

I leaned back in my chair and put my feet on the table, wondering what Sly would look like in a tux.

"Try the guesthouse, someone may have over packed." Bentley suggested. I heard Sly make a sound of agreement before the communication was cut.

Yawning, I stretched all my muscles then walked towards the far end of the Safe House. There were two couches, floor mattress, and a comfy hammock that I had called dibs on when I had first laid eyes on it. There was a short argument involving it in which I was dropped to the floor when Sly rocked the hammock and little _too_ hard, but I got back at him when I stuck a snake under the thin cover on the mattress. He was not too happy with me after that. I told him it was a harmless rat snake and got mad at him when he tried to hit it with his cane. Now that I look back, the whole thing was quite humorous.

"Imma take a nap." I yawned, crawling onto the hammock and lying on my said facing away from them. Bentley grunted something in response and kept typing away but not before sending Murray out on a job.

I closed my eyes but I just couldn't fall asleep. I let out a small sigh and my mind started to wander. I wondered what was happening in my world and if anyone missed me. I snorted quietly, knowing that if I suddenly disappeared, Tech and Clout would definitely miss me. I soon found myself thinking about my parents. Did my dad missed me or even knew I was gone for that matter? He was head-over-heels in love with the 'witch' (my stepmom) still even after three years. It's like he completely forgot about my mother. It bugged the heck out of me and he was too 'in love' to even notice anything beside the witch or anything that didn't have to do with her.

I blinked and realized my eyes were wet. Propping myself on my elbow, I wiped my eye and looked at the tear left on my hand. When did I…?

"Hey, Nifty, you OK over there?" I slowly turned my head. Murray and Bentley were looking at me a bit worriedly but I absentmindedly wiped my hand on my shorts before mumbling a quiet 'yes'. Lying back down, I stared at the roof. My thoughts were all over the place and they were whirring too fast for me to comprehend. So I let my mind go numb, hoping my wacky emotions were just a one-time thing.

oooOOOooo

I must've really been tired because I hadn't heard Sly return from his dance with Neyla (I still didn't trust here) _and _Murraysaunter in after his job was done. Next thing I knew, Sly was poking me with his cane rather roughly. I swatted away the offending object and sat up, yawning.

"Morning, sleeping beauty." he said, crossing his arms. I rolled my eyes and noticed he was still in his tux.

"Why do you still have that thing on?" I asked, poking the fabric of his jacket.

"You don't like it?" he asked.

I snorted. "Don't get me wrong, you look charming, but formal wear isn't really my cup of tea. Besides, bowties suck."

Sly let out a dramatic gasp as I sat down in one of the chairs. He put a hand to his heart looking quite offended. I wouldn't have known any better if his eyes weren't full of amusement. I shook my head and grabbed a bottle of water from the table, taking a swig.

"That was mine." he grumbled.

"Sorry for putting my girl cooties all over your drink." I muttered, tossing it at him.

"Sorry to interrupt, but I've got most of the plan figure out." Bentley said, holding the slideshow clicker in his hand.

"S'okay." I said.

The turtle nodded and uncapped his yellow marker. "Okay guys, my plan to get at the Clockwerk wings requires the use of the electric winch above the ballroom. To get control over the device, Nifty will need to hack the computers in Rajan's boardroom. Plus we'll need and extra strong saw blade to cut the wings off the statue. To make a saw blade that durable I'll need Sly to steal the gems off of headdresses of Rajan's prized elephants. And finally, I'll take to the field with my remote controlled helicopter and nullify the palace's air defenses. That should clear things up for the heist. Any questions?" he asked, looking at me in particular.

"Er… what if I can't hack Rajan's computers?" I asked, fidgeting.

"Don't worry, I'll give you a quick lesson before I send you out on your job." he said reassuringly. I let out a sigh of relief and looked at my watch. It was almost eight in the morning and I wasn't feeling tired. Weird…

"I'm going to hit the hay." Sly declared, shrugging off his jacket.

"Ditto." Murray flopped down on one of the couches. Bentley nodded in agreement, going to the other one and lying down. I snorted and rolled my eyes when Sly cautiously lifted up the sheet of his mattress.

"There's no snakes." I said.

"Good."

"You shouldn't sleep with that thing on; you're going to wrinkle it." I said, motioning to his wardrobe. I paused and stood up, starting to unbutton his shirt.

He looked up and saw me staring. Then he smirked. "Hoping for a strip tease?" he joked.

I puffed my cheeks in annoyance and marched over to the stairs. "Can it, Cooper."

I heard his laugh as I stomped down the steps, my face red.

**It's so short! ;A; Believe though, when I say the next chapter will be longer and rather exciting. Not to mention we'll soon being coming up on the next episode in which something important will happen. Anyways, thank you to all my readers and reviewers! You guys are da bomb!**

**Until next time,  
>CMilk out!<strong>


	7. Conflicting Emmotions

**Lalala! Hurrow. :3**

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**cood9:** Thank you so much! And the answer for your question might be answered soon or not so soon. Kyekyekye...

Sly Cooper: Band of Animals

Chapter 7

I whistled merrily as I strolled through the small village a few minutes away from the Safe House. The streets were bustling with villagers and a couple tourists who stuck out from the crowd like a sore thumb. Walking past a clothes shop, I paused and stared at myself in the mirror. I felt like an anime character with a sweat drop rolling down my face when I realized I looked like a tourist as well. The stall owner spotted me and smiled, beckoning me over. I hesitantly entered the small enclosed area and got a better look at the woman. She was a peacock and her feathers were not as decorative as a male's would be, but she was beautiful nothing the less. Her outfit was traditional Indian clothing and a pink silk scarf was draped loosely around her head.

"Hello." I greeted timidly.

"Hello." She patted the cushion in front of her. Once I made myself comfortable she asked, "You looking for new clothes?"

I nodded. "Yeah, just so I don't stand out so much in a crowd."

She giggled before pulling me up and directing me over to her array of different fabrics.

I ended up picking a red silk with many different stitching designs on it. She took my measurements and left me to look around. I looked at the wall full of scarves and was about to take one down when I decided against it because I didn't really need one in the first place. So, instead I went over to some manikins that displayed full outfits. A sky blue one caught my eye and I stepped towards it, my eyes bugging slightly in amazement. The fabric was blue with black and white stitch designs. The top stopped just below the breasts and the sleeves were short with the exception of the left one that had a lacy arm covering sort of thing. I chewed my lip, wondering what I would look like in the outfit.

"You like, don't you?" I cut off my thoughts and looked at the lady, blushing slightly. She held my newly sewn outfit in her arms.

"It's very pretty…" I mumbled. She just smiled and handed me my clothes.

"You can change in the back." she said, motioning to the room she had come from. I nodded and entered the room. Quickly stripping myself off my Monaco clothes I spent a few minutes trying to put my new outfit on properly. Somehow I managed and walked back out, my old clothes scrunched into an untidy ball. My new clothes consisted of a shirt with one sleeve that fanned out at the elbow, pants with gold lining, and a silk belt I tied loosely around my waist. I noted, to my dismay, that the blue outfit was gone as I walked to the front. The lady spotted me as she handed a bag to a she-leopard who purred in thanks then left.

"Beautiful." she said, smiling. She was so friendly I couldn't help but smile back.

"Thanks. You're an excellent seamstress." I said as she hand me a bag to put my old clothes in. I rummaged around in my short's pocket and pulled out a pouch full of my own earnings that I had gotten from guards and smashing things from here and in Paris. She told me how much she needed and I paid her, slipping in a tip for all her help. I was about to walk out when she tapped me on the shoulder and handed me another bag. I looked at her in confusion then peered inside the bag. I looked back up at her in shock but she just smiled with a happy sparkle in her eyes. I thanked her profusely before making my way back out onto the street.

Now I wouldn't go as far as to say I was a lucky person, but this offer was too good to pass down. I was walking down the path and wouldn't you know it, I bumped into the one and only spice lord, Rajan. At first he glared at me like some dirty street urchin, but I think my new outfit and my charming good looks (Wow, I'm starting to sound like Sly) put him back into a good mood. He helped me up and introduced himself. Panicking a bit, I tried to impersonate an Indian girl that was in my World History class. I'm not sure if it worked or not. Rajan gave me kind of a funny look, but he didn't say anything. Afterwards, he told me he was having a ball at his palace and invited me. I was a little skeptical, I wouldn't invite some random stranger who I bumped into on the road but after talking for a bit he insisted that I come as his guest. I accepted, knowing that I would be able to keep Rajan distracted if he decided Sly and Carmelita's dancing wasn't as good as I heard it to be. After the whole encounter and once I was almost back to the Safe House I punched the air in success.

oooOOOooo

I entered the Safe House and saw Sly, Bentley, and Murray still all asleep. Careful not to wake any of them, I lay down in the hammock for a quick nap. Little did I realize, sleeping in a completely different outfit from different cultures was not something recommended when you're living with three criminals who can either blow you up, break you in half, or through you all the way across the room and then some. I woke up with something sharp pressed against my neck.

"Don't move." I opened my eyes fully and almost tipped the hammock in surprise if Murray wasn't holding it in position.

"Ack- Sly! It's me-!" I managed to choke out. He quickly pulled his cane away and I sat up, rubbing the small cut in my neck.

"Nifty?" he asked, tipping his head in confusion.

I glared at him. "Who else would it be, stupid?" I asked, standing with my tail twitching irritably.

Bentley blushed ever so slightly as he adjusted his glasses while Murray smiled and ruffled my hair.

"You look good!" he said. I grinned back up at him.

"Thanks!"

I looked at Sly and saw him staring with a strange look on his face. I couldn't tell what his expression was; was it interest? Bentley elbowed the racoon as he headed back to his laptop. Sly jumped slightly then plastered that ever present grin on his face.

"Murray's right," he said, fixing his hat. "You _do_ look good."

"Thanks, by the way, I've got some interesting news!" I said excitedly. Sly and Murray pulled up some chairs while I just hopped onto the table.

"What kind of news?" Bentley asked.

"Rajan invited me to his fancy-shmancy party!" I said. "Cool right?"

"Rajan invited _you_ to the ball?" Sly asked, skeptically. I shot him a look.

"Yes. Is that hard to believe, Cooper?" I asked.

"No, but he could've invited any Indian girl if he was just wandering around the streets." he said, shrugging. My green eyes narrowed.

"Well I'm not just any girl; besides, I'm not even Indian." I said.

"Exactly. So how'd you get invited?"

I flicked my ear in irritation. He hadn't said anything close to a thanks and it annoyed me. I was risking my butt off for him and his gang so they could get the Clockwerk wings; the least they could do was thank me.

"None of your business," I snapped. "I can see you don't appreciate my part in helping you get your _precious_ Clockwerk parts." Maybe I was being a little harsh but I couldn't seem to control my anger properly. My stepmother thought it was some kind of weird disease but it just happened sometimes; there was nothing medical about it… I hoped.

Dropping to the floor in anger, I purposely flick Sly it the face with my tail then head over to the bag with my Monaco clothes in it. I send a glare at the racoon before heading to the small washroom, slamming the door behind me. I quickly changed and headed for the stairs. I could feel all three members of the gang staring at me and I wish one of them would stop me from leaving but in the end none of them did.

"I'll be at the job on time." I said as I left. My heart squeezed and I actually had to choke back a few tears. I had no idea why I was so emotional. They were just fictional characters weren't they? Bentley, Murray, and Sly… none of them were real, but then why did I feel this way? Maybe it was because I was so attached to them as a child and my silly childhood dream of meeting them and pulling off heists with them was finally coming true. It made sense but it still didn't explain why it hurt me so much when Sly didn't stop me from leaving. I came to the conclusion that Bentley and Murray thought Sly would try to try to stop me so they didn't say anything.

It still hurt though…

oooOOOooo

"_Alright, Nifty, all you need to do is hack into both vault room computers to get control of the electronic winch above the ballroom."_ Bentley's voice crackled through my earpiece. The turtle was busy getting his RC helicopter ready so he could take out some van. I glanced at Cooper and Murray. Yes, I decided I would resort to a last name basis with Cooper. It seemed immature on my part, but I didn't feel like I could say his first name without my heart squeezing.

"So why are these guys here?" I asked, referring to the hippo and racoon.

"_The second you enter the servers they'll be on to you. Sly and Murray will need to work together to keep the thugs off of your back. Got that you two?"_

Sly nodded and turned to Murray. "You and me pal, side by side."

"'The Murray' knows no fear."

They got into position and I ran over to the first computer, typing furiously. I remembered the quick review Bentley talked me through while I was looking under some tables for a code to open the doors of the vault room. All my focus was on my job and it took me a while but I finally managed to get past the level six barrier. Dodging a monkey guard's spear, I started on the level five barrier on the second computer. As I continued my job I found it getting a bit easier and I was soon on the last level. I was about to break it when Murray yelled out a warning. I whirled around and saw a goat charging towards me. I jumped out of the way, landing awkwardly on my ankle. The goat ended up getting tripped my Sly's cane and it fell over the edge. I sucked in a sharp breath and a few tears rolled down my face but I ignored them and crawled over to the computer, finally getting past the last barrier.

"_You're unstoppable!"_ Bentley exclaimed. _"We've got control of the winch!"_

"Thanks for the back up." I said, flinching as I stood.

"No problem, Nifty!" Murray said, pounding his fists together.

"_OK guys, you two go hook up the direct feed while the coast is clear. Sly, go get into position in front of the elephant building."_ I watched as Sly gave Bentley an OK before heading for the exit.

"You OK, Nifty?" Murray asked as we headed to the winch. I looked up at him in surprise.

"Oh, yeah. I'm fine." I said, trying my best not to limp. The hippo studied me for a moment before sighing slightly.

My ankle hurt like heck and I was sure it was sprained. I just hoped Rajan wouldn't ask me to dance. Now _that_ would be a show.

**So. The next chapter will be the last for episode 2. Then, we get to move onto episode 3 where the real drama will begin. HAWHAWHAW! Anyways, as you know, I appreciate all your reviews and my anonymous readers! You know who you are. So enjoy the rest of your week guys! Bye!**

**CMilk out!  
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	8. Dance Dance Revolution Not

**Sorry for the wait guys! It's a shorty but we finally get to start on the next episode in the next chapter so I'm pretty excited about that. Oh! And happy belated birthday to Sarah Victoria Cullen!**

**Nifty:** -runs in with birthday cake- Here!

**Where'd you get that?**

**Nifty: **Stole it from a bakery down the street.

**Baker: **Get-a back with-a my cake-a!

**Nifty:** Shit! Gotta run!

**-facepalm-**

**Reviews:**

**lazy4ever: Hey!-cackles- Nifty must dance! Nifty: NOOOOOOESSSS!**

**boona: Aw thanks! I don't think it's the _best _story ever.**

**XMimiBelle: :)**

**Sara Victoria Cullen: No worries, I got a Ringette stick. Easy to jab eyes out with.**

**emowolf64: Whoa, don't leave yet! Hehe! It isn't even half way done yet! And wow, I did that? I'll have to check it out!**

Sly Cooper: Band of Animals

Chapter 8

I feel Sly staring at me, his gaze boring holes into my back. We still weren't talking but there were times when he looked like he wanted to say something to me and sometimes the other way around, but we were both too stubborn and hard-headed to do anything about it.

"Ready to go, Murray?" I asked, adjusting my hoodie over the top of the blue outfit I had gotten the other day. I had to stuff the arm cover into the sleeve which made my left arm look super buff. The pink Hippo grinned and followed me to the stairs.

"See ya in the ballroom, pal!" he said, waving to Sly. The racoon waved back before we left the Safe House. I lead the way to the winch room while Murray took care of all the guards. My ankle was still killing me but thank the Goddesses that I was somewhat resistant to pain. Somewhat being the key word.

"OK, Murray. Make sure not to make any sudden movements when you hangin' off this thing, got it?" I asked, securing the rope around his waist.

"I got it." he said.

"Well, you're ready." I said. "Let's just hope nobody decides to look above the statue." I laughed, but there was no humor behind it. I was nervous this plan was going to go all wrong even though I knew Bentley's plan were 99 percent flawless, but it was the 1 percent that kept me on edge. Rajan was a _big_ tiger and he looked like he could do some pretty big damage, not to mention all the undercover cops that crawling through the whole palace.

Murray seemed to sense my discomfort because he ruffled my hair reassuringly. I looked up and gave him a thankful smile.

"Thanks." I said, hugging him. He was surprised at first, but he soon returned the gesture. My watch abruptly started beeping and I pulled away.

"Good luck, Nifty!" he said, jumping down into the ballroom. I saw the wire on the winch tighten as it held him over the statue.

"And good luck to you, Murray." I turned with new resolve in my eyes. This was no time to go soft. Even though Cooper and I were going through a rough patch I was still part of the gang and they were counting on me to do my part. Touching the little button on my earpiece I tuned in on the channel the rest of the gang were on.

I headed down a hidden flight of stairs I had found and entered the ballroom from one of the covered balcony halls. I could easily see Murray's pink stomach hanging down from his position but luckily for us, everyone else was down on the dance floor. Rajan was sitting in his throne looking bored while his solid god statue stood tall behind him. The four armed cat vaguely reminded me of Neyla who happened to spot me peering over the railing. She smirked at me then continued her conversation with Carmelita. I still didn't trust that cat.

"_OK Sly, the bridge is down. I'll warm up the van and get ready with the RC Chopper… good luck!"_ I let out a sigh of relief that the turtle was OK then made my way down the dance floor.

Before I could reach Rajan two rhino guards appeared and told him about the bridge. After a short exchange the two guards left in a hurry and I heard Sly talking to Murray before he strut out onto the dance floor, looking as confidant as ever. I couldn't help but roll my eyes.

"Rajan?" I walked up to the tiger. He snapped out of his irritated mood and smiled.

"Greetings, Catrina." I flinched at my made up name. It definitely did not sound Indian. He chuckled as if he was thinking the exact same thing.

"How are you?" I asked a bit nervously.

"Fine. How about you?" he asked.

"Oh, I'm good…" I trailed off, not sure what else to say. We stood; well he sat, in awkward silence before Sly's voice crackled through my earpiece.

"_Miss Fox, I believe you owe me a dance."_

I looked over and spotted them in the middle of the floor. Sly's mic picked up Carmelita's voice so I could listen in on their conversation. _"About time, I'd thought you left."_

"_Just waiting for the perfect moment." _he said, holding his hand out. The she-fox smiled slightly and put her hand in his.

"Would you like to dance?" I jumped, forgetting I was standing beside the dangerous spice-lord.

"Er…" I mentally slapped myself, knowing I had jinxed it when I hoped he wouldn't ask for a dance. "I'm not sure I know how to Tango."

"You're not sure?" he chuckled, raising an amused eyebrow. I blushed and waved my hand, trying to pass it off as nothing.

"_Nifty! Dance with him! They'll be less of a chance that Murray will be spotted if the spice-lord himself is out on the dance floor!"_ Bentley said. I inwardly groaned.

"Come one, it will be fun. You won't regret it!" I squeaked as Rajan dragged me out onto the dance floor like an eager teen at his first prom. I saw Sly give me a questioning look over his shoulder before Carmelita asked him something.

"I'm not sure…"

"Just follow my lead," he said, confidently. "I'll do the steps first then you repeat them, OK?"

I bit my lip, but when I looked in his eyes I saw a sparkle that didn't seem to fit with his evil black-market demeanor. I tipped my head in confusion, trying to figure out what it was, but the music started up and Rajan eagerly started to lead me around the floor. It struggled to keep up and each step I took with my right foot sent waves of pain up my leg. I ground my teeth and stumbled causing a few people who were watching to snicker. My face flushed in embarrassment, but I was determined to keep up.

"Would you like to stop?" Rajan whispered.

"No!" I hissed thought clenched teeth. He gave me a surprised look but nodded.

"_You look familiar to me, are you in law enforcement?"_ I heard Carmelita ask. Sly smirked at we danced past them.

"_I often deal with police while on the job."_

I snorted at his response. Rajan looked down at me.

"Something the matter?" he asked.

"Oh, nothing." I replied innocently.

A few minutes later the song FINALLY ended but on the last step my ankle decided to go on strike and I gasped as a sharp pain traveled up my leg. I would've collapsed if Rajan had not caught me. Some of the guests gasped a little overdramatically but I had more important matters at the moment. One dance was more than enough time for Murray to get the wings and it was our dumb luck that someone noticed the wings were missing.

"The wings! THE WINGS ARE MISSING!" someone screeched. It was a mass of chaos after that. Rajan snapped his head towards his statue and saw that the giant metal wings were indeed gone. He was too stunned to notice me slip out of his arms and limp my way over to the dark hall that lead the way to the back entrance of the dance hall.

"Nifty!" Sly slung me over his shoulder and dashed towards the exit in a hurry. I found out why soon after.

"COOPER!" Carmelita screamed from the middle of the chaos. Sly laughed.

oooOOOooo

After we got away with the Clockwerk Wings Carmelita blew her cover and started making arrests left and right. With his reputation in shambles, Rajan was forced to flee from his own party. He's now in hiding somewhere deep in the jungle. Sly decided we deserved another break so we headed to Bollywood. It took some doing, but we eventually snuck Murray onto the set of a full blown Indian musical. I was happy that we got to unwind after that close call, but Rajan was still out there and somehow, I knew things were about to get tough.

**Pffffffffffft it's so short. Oh well. I was origionally gunna have Nifty get brought to Rajan's spice operation by the man himself but I decided she'll get kidnapped later on. Just adds more suspense now that you know that. Haha! Anyways thanks to all of you guys for your never-ending support! I love you guys! -hugs- Please leave a review and I'll see ya next time!**

**CMilkLOL out!  
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	9. The Only Way To Bug An Office

**Sorry for the long wait guys!**

**Reviews:**

**escamval13-** Thanks!

**boona-** Haha! I'm planning some future interaction between Nifty and Carm. Whether it will be good or bad is yet to be known~!

**emowolf64-** I call them episodes because that's what they're called in the game.

**lazy4ever- **lol which part? XD

**Sarah Victoria Cullen-** Nifty: Can ya get this girl off me? She's been surprise glomping me since last chapter.

You have a fan, Nifty. Enjoy it while you can!

Nifty: -_-

**D.J. Scales-** Thanks! I hope you stick around to read more!

**SoxxyMoxxyFanfics-** Aw thanks!

Nifty: Ha! Everyone marvel at my bestestness!

**SkellySaurus-** I read some of Inkheart, but I watched all of the movie. Never really got into the series though. Gwin's awesome!

Sly Cooper: Band of Animals

Chapter 9

"How're you doing?" Sly asked, pushing me farther up his back.

"Fine…" I sighed. I saw the racoon grimace with concern when he looked at me out of the corner of his eye. My arms hung loosely around his neck and my tail drooped limply onto the forest floor. I blinked slowly, trying to keep my eyes open.

"Hang on a little longer, Nifty. We should be there in about forty-five minutes." Bentley said over his shoulder.

I could hear Sly's breathing quickly becoming laboured and I felt like a complete burden. If only the jungle was not so hot. I had gotten heat exhaustion before, but I was certain I was bordering on heat stroke this time around. I growled a little in frustration; my fur was making me much hotter that I would be.

"Something wrong?" he asked. I just groaned and buried my flushed face in his neck. His deep chuckled shook his body as he took a big step over a fallen tree.

"This sucks," I mumbled bitterly, my voice muffled by Sly's fur. "I didn't even get ta use my machete!"

"No worries! They'll be lots of stuff you can hack up when we get to the temple." Murray said, smiling as he hacked away at a wall of vegetation.

_That's right… _I thought. It took some detective work, but the gang had managed to track down where Rajan had gone into hiding. Somehow, he'd managed to transform a long forgotten temple into the thriving center of his spice operation. And it's there that we'll find him. The jungle, too thick to drive through, forced us to walk the long distance to our target. We ran into a few problems along the way, (cough, quicksand, cough) but pushed on. For the temple was more than just Rajan's hideout, it was also home to the Clockwerk heart. A pump so strong and tireless, it could increase spice production _tenfold_. Good for Rajan, but awful for the rest of the world.

Hope he's not counting on that heart too much, because tonight, it comes home with us.

oooOOOooo

After somewhat recovering from heat exhaustion and Sly's recon job, Bentley gathered us around his projector.

"The Clockwerk heart is under some steep security. Heck, Rajan is carrying half of it at all times! To get at the good, I'll have to gather some more information. Nifty will plant a bug in Rajan's office while I lift the spice operation blueprints off the 'Spice Lord' while he makes his rounds. Unfortunately, while we're collecting intelligence on him he'll be collecting data on us with an elephant driven satellite array. Take it out, or he'll be able to intercept all of our communications!" Bentley finished dramatically.

I grinned and stood up, sliding the machete into the belt I had gotten with my red outfit (unfortunately I forgot both outfits in Bollywood). "Looks like you'll have to hold down the fort for us." I said as I reached up to sling my arm around the Murray's shoulders.

"That's right," said Bentley, stocking up on sleep darts. "Just lay low and you and the Safe House should be fine."

The hippo hit his fists together. "No worries! 'The Murray' will take out anyone who dares enter the Cooper Gang's Safe House!"

"Thanks pal!" Sly called as he, Bentley, and I stepped out into the rain. We had made our Safe House in the jaws of a giant stone snake head. We nodded to each other before heading off in different directions. Bentley and Sly headed towards the satellite while I headed towards the red weasel head in the sky. The turtle had finished my binocucom on the road from Bollywood. He even programed my own icon into it so we could see where I was supposed to go. I felt like a _real_ member of the Cooper Gang.

I ran halfway across the temple grounds before I had to climb up a bunch of soaked foliage to a tipsy stone platform. There was a small pool with a large bug bathing in it. The bug would occasionally make small chirping sounds with its wings, but other than that it was as calm as could be.

"_Nifty, the insect in that pool is a rare Indian water bug. If you can carry it into Rajan's office, its wings will transmit local sound waves at a frequency I can monitor."_ Bentley said.

I blinked and stopped scratching the bug's head. "So let me get this straight. We're going to bug Rajan's office… with a bug?"

Bentley chuckled slightly. _"It is an elegant plan, I agree."_

"Elegant… right."

"_Now, pay attention. That water bug can only survive in stagnant pools… if kept out of water too long it'll become unhappy and likely draw the attention of local guards."_

Standing up, I squinted through the rain and spotted another pool a little ways off. "Hmm… looks likes there's a few pools on the way to Rajan's office. A short swim every now and then should keep our little friend quiet."

I lifted my binocucom so it rested on my head and stepped into the little pool. The bug looked at me curiously as I picked it up and put it on my back. I hopped down off the stone platform then onto the ground. A monkey guard strolled past before I ran over and hopped onto a red and white mushroom. It bounced me up to a high rock ledge where I put the bug down in another pool. Slipping the binocucom back over my eyes, I saw three more pools that I could visit before reaching Rajan's office. For some reason I could never see someone like Rajan having a boring office with bland wallpaper, wall photos, and a desk with a gold name plate… strange. I picked the bug back up and headed for the next pool, getting lost in my own thoughts.

"Hey! Intruder!" My head snapped up in surprise. A monkey guard charged towards me with an angry look on his face. It was then when I realized the bug had been out of water too long and was now making a loud chirping sound. I 'eep'-ed as I jumped back to avoid a blow from his tail only to have a stream of fire shot at me.

Landing, I tread on my tail and fell, almost squishing the poor bug. I quickly rolled over and kicked the monkey in the leg as hard as I could. He dropped to the ground sobbing. Grabbing his tail, I threw him into the river; apparently, it is not mandatory to learn how to swim in this place.

"Now to deal with you." I said, dropping the bug into a nearby pool.

"_Everything OK over there?"_ I heard Murray ask.

"Everything's fine," I said. Picking the bug back up, I trotted over to another pool beside the waterfall. "I just had a close call with a guard."

"_Are you hurt?"_

"Nope."

"_O.K. Well, see ya when you get back!"_

Seeing the office just ahead, I crossed the stone bridge over the river and hopped onto the large roots of a tree that manages to grow through the cracks of the temple. I jumped off the root and caught the edge of the wall then hauled myself up, placing the bug into another pool for good measure. After a few seconds I picked the bug up and headed over to the door to Rajan's office.

Entering, I was greeted by a cranky cobra that I easily disposed of and a sucky excuse for laser security. I was glad I was light on my feet as I avoided the lasers and jumped onto his desk then into the pool.

"There you go, little buddy." I said, placing the bug in the water. "This'll be your new home for now, sorry."

It looked up at me with big black eyes and chirped happily. I gave it weird look then sighed and shrugged, turning to go. To each his own I guess.

Remember what I said to Sly about me not being as nimble I look? This also applies to my luck. Going to leave, I slipped on the side of the pool and fell onto one of the floor lasers. It did not set off an alarm like I thought it would, but instead burned whatever of mine made contact with it.

"Ouch!" I leaped into the air and desperately made my way out of the office area. Groaning in pain, I rubbed my butt and realized my tail had been singed as well. "Aw. My poor tail!"

Grumbling obscenities under my breath, I stomped out of Rajan's office and started heading back to the Safe House.

"_You have a very colourful vocabulary." _Sly's voice said. I jumped in surprise and looked around for the racoon.

"_Nifty, are you listening?"_ Bentley asked.

"What? Oh. Sorry." I found a safe perch up in a tree and pulled my binocucom over my eyes. "Continue."

"_Since you're finished your job you can head back to the Safe House. When you get there I want you to tune into the bug's wing vibrations."_

"How do I do that?" I asked, gingerly touching my singed fur.

"_I left instructions for you on a sticky note,"_ Bentley said. _"Just try not to mess around on my laptop."_

I rolled my eyes and turned my binocucom off. Jumping out of the tree, I took a few steps only to be spotted by another guard. I held my arms up in defense, too tired and sore to run, but the blow never came. I cracked open my eye and saw the goat flying into the nearby river. Gaping, I stared at Neyla as she landed in front of me.

"You should try to be more careful next time. I don't believe Sly would be too happy if something happened to his kit." she said, crossing her arms. I immediately regained my composer at her kit comment.

"I'm _not_ his kit!" I growled.

Neyla laughed. "I'm just kidding! Besides, you're someone else's daughter; missing daughter to be precise."

"What?" I asked, blinking.

"Take a look for yourself." Neyla tossed a rolled up piece of paper at me. Opening it, I saw my face staring back at me. The word 'Missing' was printed in big bold letters on top of the page and under my picture was contact information. I was not surprised there was no reward. My father's second wife was the cheapest person in the world, no wonder she was mad at me for breaking her 'expensive' antique vase. I looked at the price tag she threw out when she bought it. The stupid thing was only twenty bucks. Anyways, back to the matter at hand.

"How am I…?" How was I wanted in Sly's world? The only explanation was that I actually got sucked into the game and I was missing from my world as well.

"Your name _is_ Jordan Maang, correct?" the she-tiger asked.

I eyed her wearily. "Yes, but don't go telling no one what it is."

"Don't worry; I only wanted to make sure. I'm here strictly on business, anyways." she said, waving her hand in dismissal.

"Yeah, thanks for not ratting us out at the ball, but I still don't trust you." I said, tucking the poster away.

Neyla laughed lightly. "I should be thanking you; the look on Carmelita's face was priceless."

"Ms. Fox took it hard, huh?"

"No one likes to have their affections played with."

"Uh huh…"

The smile on Neyla's face disappeared. "Let's get to the task at hand, shall we? I've learned of a secret entrance to half of the Clockwerk heart. Legally I can't enter the premises-"

"Without a warrant," I said, cutting her off impatiently. "But someone like me could enter without a problem. I getcha."

Neyla smirked. "Don't fall behind while I lead you to the entrance. This place is thick with guards and standing still can be lethal."

"Yeah, yeah, let's just- HEY, WAIT UP!" I kicked it into high gear as Neyla took off. This was going to be fun.

**Holy bug in a pizza box! 31 reviews? Aw man I love you guys! -hugs- Free virtual Nifty's face cookies for everyone! But seriously, you guys are amazing. :) I was really stresses for a while because I'm on vacation and I have a shitload of homework. -couch- Damn Chrysalids Esssay -cough- BUUUUUUTT Haha, butt! -giggles to self-**

**Nifty:** Good lord. -_-

**Anyways, hope you guys are having and AMAZING week and if not, keep your head up brosilis! Please review! Oh! Poll up on da ol' profile! Please vote! Although, I have a pretty good idea which one you guys are gunna go for.**

**CMilkLOL out!**


	10. The First Heart Piece

**Edit:** So I've re-written this chapter because it sucks. Anyways, enjoy the new and improved chapter 10!

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><p>Reviews:<p>

emowolf64- Now we have Chibi Nifty napkins! X3 Anyways, I don't mind suggestions. I'm always up for 'em! You hear that readers? Thanks for the review!

boona- I'm glad my story completes your day! Thanks for reviewing!

franticcooper- Hey! Welcome to BoA! Thanks for the review!

SoxxyMoxxy- Nifty: Here's a picture. It'll last longer.

Cookie! OMNOMNOMNOM And yes! Sly/Nifty forever! We can call it... 'Sifty'! XD Thanks for the review!

XCourtneyXGearsX- Thanks for the review!

Sarah Victoria Cullen- Nifty: O.o;;;;; -backs away slowly-

Haha! Thanks for the review!

D.J. Scales- Aha thanks for the review! Is it good interesting or bad? o3o

MusicAnimal- Thanks a lot! ^^ I totally agree. I'm trying to think of something, but I don't have anything yet. Suggestions? OwO And thanks for the review!

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><p>Sly Cooper: Band of Thieves<p>

Chapter 10

"Whoa…" I gawked at the production that was taking place in the place. The whole room was crawling with guards and various mechanical machines hummed loudly as they worked. A strange noise was coming from the center of the room. I cringed at what I saw. Half of a large metal heart was suspended above a circular platform and it beat loudly as red, toxic looking fumes emitted from it.

A thick metal cable kept the heart suspended above the platform. It stretched across the room and to a control box. Unfortunately for me, the box was locked tight and I would have to pickpocket the keys from a couple of rhino guards. The security did not seem as bad as I thought it would be; which was bad for Rajan, but good for me.

Sneaking up behind one of the guards, I pulled out a few coins and the first key. The second guard was on the platform directly under the heart, so I took a little more time to position myself so I would not be spotted by anyone else. The rhino had a lot more in his pouch than the key. I pulled out some coins, a picture of his family on vacation, and a crumpled picture of me as 'Catrina' before actually getting the key.

"Looks like Rajan isn't too fond of me since I helped steal the Clockwerk Wings." I chuckled as I made my way over to the control box. The locks clicked as I unlocked them then pressed the release button. The claw holding the piece of metal opened and heart fell to the ground with a loud bang. The rhino guard on the platform fell off as a wave of raw energy radiated from the heart and the other one was too confused to decide what to do.

Gingerly taking the thing in my arms, I ran past the confused guard and made a beeline for the door. I was just about to make it when a monkey guard jumped out of nowhere and tackled me over the ledge. Pushing him off, I was about to hit the water when a blue and grey blur appeared and caught me. It set me down on one of the arms of a rotating machine beside it, but I slipped and fell into the water before it could catch me. I came up sputtering and saw Sly looking down at me with an eyebrow raised and an amused look on his face.

"Hello," I said, trying to look casual as I floated onto my back. "Nice of you to come join me."

Sly spire jumped to another arm and scrunched his nose at the water. "I'd love to have a bubble bath with you, but there seems to be no bubbles, so I don't think I will join you."

I rolled my eyes and kicked water at him. Maybe I could make him fall off so my skills would not look so miniscule compared to his.

"Hey!" The racoon back flipped then ninja spire jumped, landing perfectly on another machine arm. Dengit.

Luckily for me, there was a nearby pipe I could climb back up to the ledge where the door was. Sly followed close behind and held the door open, flashing me a boyish grin. I paused beside him and smirked, shaking the water out of my fur. He shooed me away and let the stone door roll close behind us. Turning, I chucked the Clockwerk heart piece at him.

"So how did you know where I was?" I asked curiously.

Sly tucked the heart piece into his red bag then said, "I ran into Neyla on the way to the Safe House. She said she showed you where the first piece of the heart was."

"Yep. Although, I still don't trust her." I said, jumping onto a mushroom. It bounced me up to a rock platform where I kicked a guard into the river.

"Why not?" Sly asked. "She's helped us out a lot. We owe her big time."

"I know," I sighed, watching Sly walk onto a vine to cross to another rock ledge. "But I just have this nagging feeling in my gut that she isn't doing this to help us, or anyone for that matter."

Sly did not answer as he watched me cautiously take a step out onto the vine. I inched slowly across, but slipped when I was half way and fell into the river with a loud splash. The water was ice cold even though the surrounding air was hot and muggy. It was a nice, but shocking change. Although, it peeved me that I was not able to walk across vines and other ropes like Sly could.

"Are you OK?" he asked, offering me his cane. I grabbed the hook and he hauled me out of the water, pulling me towards him a little _too_ close for comfort. I blushed and took a step back, but almost fell back into the river when Sly caught my arm.

"Er…" Sly chuckled and ruffled my hair playfully. I stuck my tongue out and ran towards the large snake statue that the Safe House was in.

"We're back!" I yelled as we walked inside. Bentley was at his laptop as usual and Murray was eating; as usual.

"Good job, Nifty!" Bentley said, smiling. "You getting the first half of the Clockwerk heart cuts out a few jobs that we would have had to do. Although, we would have liked you to tell us what you were doing. We were starting to get worried."

"Going alone was dangerous." added Murray.

I sat down in one of the chairs and put my feet up on the table. "Ha! I laugh in the face of danger!"

Bentley rolled his eyes and shoved my feet off of the table as he directed our attention to the projector.

"Alright, guys, I have some bad news. Rajan has gone into hiding somewhere in the temple. I guess the destruction of his satellite array and my invasion of his personal space spooked him, not to mention Nifty stole one of the heart pieces. Do get his portion of the Clockwerk heart; we'll have to drive him out into the open. Given Rajan's spice addled temper. I'd recommend making him angry."

"That shouldn't be too hard." I said, scratching my cheek. "What're we going to do?"

"Well, first we'll destroy the center of his operation; the spice grinder," the turtle said as he circled the spice grinder then scribbled it out. I swear, sometimes it seemed he was having too much fun with his slideshows. "Then we'll demolish the damn above the temple in an attempt to flood him out. If that doesn't work, I've made arrangements to exchange one of the temple's mesa rubies for some high explosives; which, if necessary we can use to flood the whole temple grotto! If my psychological profile is accurate, Rajan should pick up the other half of the Clockwerk heart before making his escape; effectively bringing it to us."

"Why don't I just show him my face?" I asked as I pulled out the picture of me that I pickpocketed from one of the guards. "That should be enough to anger him."

"Yes, but he would be less likely to grab the heart piece before perusing you." Bentley answered.

"Besides, we wouldn't get to blow something up!" Murray added. I laughed and high-fived the hippo. He was just like Clout. Speaking of my giant goofball of a friend…. I quieted as thoughts of my gang invaded my head. I wonder what they were doing.

"Hey, Nifty!" Murray waved a hand in front of my face. I blinked in surprise.

"What did you say?" I asked.

"We're going to get some shut eye," said Bentley. "It's almost sunrise and we have a big night tomorrow."

"Oh… uh can I talk to you Sly," I asked hesitantly. "It'll only take a minute."

The racoon shrugged and followed me outside. I sat and swung my feet over the edge of the stone snake's mouth. Sly sat cross-legged beside me, his cane lying across his lap. The sun was just beginning to rise and it cast beautiful slivers of sunlight across the jungle. I sighed.

"So…" Sly coughed, probably feeling a bit awkward.

I saw him looking at me expectantly out of the corner of my eye. At least he didn't look as though I was wasting his time.

"I was just wondering…" I paused, taking my time and enjoying his company. "if you could teach me how to do all the stuff you. Like, walk on vines and stuff."

Sly smiled. "Sure! But… did you want to talk about anything else?"

"Er… no. Why do you ask?" I said a little too quickly.

"Just wondering, you've been zoning out lately." he said. "I may not have much consoling skills, being a thief and all, but I'm always here if you need someone to talk to."

I looked at Sly and gave him a thankful smile. We sat there in silence, watching the sun rise before I stood and stretched, yawning loudly.

"Time for some shut eye, I guess." I said tiredly. Sly stood as well and turned to face me when a surprise look crossed his face. It was soon replaced with a grim look and dare I say, scared?

"Well if it isn't Sly Cooper and Catrina."

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><p>It's... so bad. ;A; You can totally tell I rushed this. I'm sowy! I'll re-write this eventually. I'm just glad i got it out. Anyways, I've pretty much decided SlyNifty. Sifty! XDDDDD

OK, a few questions: First, if I made a tumblr (I'm so mainstream ewe) would you guys follow? Second, now that we can make covers for our stories, should I have Nifty, Nifty and Sly, or Nifty and the gang? Third, uh... I forgot... XD I'll get back to you on that. So! Leave your feed back in a review and you'll get uh... a Nifty plushy!

Nifty: Aren't I so cute in plush form?

-pushes away-

CMilkLOL out!

* * *

><p>Hopefully this one doesn't suck as much. Also, I should have the cover done by the next chapter. Until then, see ya!<p> 


	11. Author's Note

Note

Uh… hey? PLEASE DON'T HURT ME! I know I'm a horrible person for not updating this in so long! People who read TWatF should be used to it by now, but you guys. Oh my god, I am so sorry! SO SORRY! I have a few reasons as to why I haven't been writing, the biggest one being that I'm not happy with where this story is going and I REALLY want to rewrite it. But, let's start from the beginning.

Last July was it? I posted chapter 10 then rewrote it. I start chapter 11, but it just wasn't coming out. I decided to leave it for a while and before I could come back to it, my Grandma passed away and I didn't get much done. The other big reason is that I've gotten much more into my art and it sort of took over everything. Now, whenever I try to write something, I can never finish it. It's horrible, and I hope it never happens to any of you.

So, long story short, life's been busy and art happened. I apologize to you guys so much and I hope all of you are still following this story even though I don't deserve any of you. OTL Last thing guys, when I rewrite this, do you want me to post a separate story or do you want me to just replace the chapters of this one? I'm leaning towards publishing a whole new story. Please hang in there and until next time, SHOW ME YOUR BLING AND LET ME SHINE YOU!

-CMilk out!

PS. I freaken LOVE you guys! You have no idea what how much encouragement your reviews give me. I don't deserve any of you! Feel free to bash me as much as you want.


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